iPhone 7 Vs Galaxy S8 Review: Should You Upgrade?

It is a question on the lips of millions of smartphone buyers, but the reality is “Galaxy S8 or iPhone 7?” will be the battle for the majority of 2017. So does
Apple have what it takes to compete with Samsung’s next generation device and which is the best upgrade? Let’s take a look...

Note: thanks to Samsung UK and Three UK for loan samples of the Galaxy S8 and iPhone 7 used in this review

Gordon Kelly

The Galaxy S8 makes the iPhone 7 look like a phone from the past

Displays - Samsung’s Big Win

Comparing 2016 and 2017 smartphones usually results in a big win in at least one category for the newer model and for the Galaxy S8 it is the display:

Quite frankly Samsung’s new OLED ‘Infinity Display’ is in a different league to the iPhone 7’s ageing LCD Retina Display. Not only is it almost 20% larger, it is brighter, sharper and - as the first Mobile HDR accredited mobile screen - it offers dramatically better contrast.

Gordon Kelly

The Galaxy S8's tiny bezels provide a huge display in a very compact form factor

If there is a downside to the Infinity Display, it is that Samsung was forced to reduce the default resolution to 2220 x 1080 to save battery life (more later) - but this is still far higher than the iPhone 7’s frankly outdated 1334 x 750 pixels and it can be cranked back up if you prefer.

The remarkable thing Samsung has achieved here is a 20% greater screen size for just a 12% increase in weight. In fact the Galaxy S8 even has a 5% larger display than the iPhone 7 Plus yet it weighs over 20% less. This is compactness taken to a whole new level.

Gordon Kelly

Despite it's much larger display, the 5.8-inch Galaxy S8 is not much larger than the 4.7-inch iPhone 7

But this win isn’t all about numbers, the Galaxy S8 is also more ergonomic. It’s curved edges and elongated 18.5:9 aspect ratio (vs 16:9 in the iPhone 7) make it feel great in hand and keeps it usable one handed. There’s also the added bonus of support for microSD expandable storage and Samsung has still managed to squeeze in a 3.5mm jack and facial/iris scanner (more in the Performance section).

Where the iPhone 7 does strike back is its more durable aluminium back and while the fingerprint reader consumes far too much space, it isn’t ludicrously positioned beside the rear camera like the Galaxy S8 where it is hard to reach and repeatedly causes you to smudge the camera lens.

Gordon Kelly

Somehow Samsung has still managed to fit a headphone jack into the Galaxy S8

Both phones are IP68 water and dust resistant, which is frankly par for the course these days, though it’s impossible to get away from how far Samsung has pulled ahead of Apple in overall design innovation. The fact the iPhone 8 is expected to copy many of the Galaxy S8’s traits (glass back, virtually bezel-less design) only proves this.

Winner: Galaxy S8 - Apple has stood still for too long and Samsung’s design is simply in a different class

Performance - Samsung’s Self Inflicted Failure

Samsung may easily win the first two categories, but it is Apple’s iPhone 7 which is the vastly better performer because Samsung simply cannot stop self-sabotaging its phones.

Quite simply the iPhone 7 delivers a much faster and vastly smoother software experience compared to the Galaxy S8. Apple has always been good at optimising its hardware and software and the fact the Galaxy S8 can’t hold a candle even to the generation older Pixel XL shows where Samsung continues to go wrong.

Gordon Kelly

TouchWiz has never looked better, but it is still bloated

Android on a Samsung phone also means outdated software (the Galaxy S8 ships with Android 7.0 when Android 7.1 is seven months old) and endless duplication: two app stores, two calculators, two web browsers, two mobile payment services, two clocks, etc. And the newest addition: personal assistant Bixby is just a poor knock-off of Google Assistant with a dedicated (and locked) physical Bixby button. Pointless.

Yes, iOS may have gotten more bloated over the years but there is no duplication and it hasn’t affected performance. Stock Android on the Pixel shows Google has the core platform to compete with iOS, but Samsung has no interest in delivering it in its optimised form.

Gordon Kelly

Both the iPhone 7 and Galaxy S8 fit first class hardware inside super thin designs, but there's no comparison in their performance

As such the specifications of the two smartphones are ultimately rather pointless:

Elsewhere you will find a couple of connectivity benefits to the Galaxy S8 such as Bluetooth 5.0 (2x speed, 4x range of Bluetooth 4.2) and LTE (4G) speeds up to one gigabit, but these are unlikely to deliver real world benefits while third party accessory makers and carriers catch up.

Winner: iPhone 7 - Apple continues to win this battle with ease and until Samsung rethinks its self serving approach to Android there is no sign of that changing

Cameras - Samsung Leads But Stagnates

There is a new smartphone camera champion in town and it isn’t made by Apple or Samsung. The Google Pixel took the crown in 2016 and neither the iPhone 7 nor Galaxy S8 can usurp it, but in the head-to-head between these giants it is the Galaxy S8 which easily comes out on top.

Gordon Kelly

The Galaxy S8 increases Samsung's lead over Apple's iPhone 7 camera

Both phones have problems with colours. The Galaxy S8 has a tendency to oversaturate while the iPhone 7 washes out a lot of shots. The latter is sometimes praised for being more ‘accurate’ but that’s not what I found - there are far too many greys (particularly in dark areas) for that to be the case. The Galaxy S8 delivers more detail as well, but the Pixel is the yardstick the other two need to beat.

Gordon Kelly

Samsung has closed the gap, but the Google Pixel still beats both the Galaxy S8 and iPhone 7

Where the Galaxy S8 camera really stands out against the iPhone 7, however, is low light. Apple has been lagging behind here for several generations and it remains an area the company must address with the iPhone 8, if Google isn’t to move even further ahead with the Pixel 2 which will be announced around the same time (Sept/Oct).

Gordon Kelly

Samsung's low light performance is much improved. The Pixel still wins, but Apple has fallen a long way behind

It’s a similar case with selfies. The Galaxy S8’s front camera has an 8MP sensor and f/1.7 aperture versus the iPhone 7’s 5MP, f/2.2 combo. Neither phone nails this category but again Samsung takes the sharper more vivid shots and its Snapchat-style filters may be a blatant rip-off but they will likely prove a big hit.

Gordon Kelly

The Galaxy S8's front facing camera has improved and Snapchat-style effects will be a crowd pleaser

As for video, it’s closer with both phones actually taking better video than the Pixel (Google’s weak spot - particularly in low light) and while I prefer the Galaxy S8’s brighter results I doubt owners will be unhappy with either model here.

Gordon Kelly

Samsung and Google stand a class apart from the iPhone 7

Elsewhere Samsung also delivers a party trick: iris and facial recognition.

The latter is easily fooled by a photograph, so skip it but the former has the potential to replace the fingerprint scanner - at least on paper. In reality, however, it's simply too inconsistent to use regularly (it can struggle in very bright and very low light and if you're wearing sunglasses) and it is far more conspicuous having to unlock your phone by looking at it.

Gordon Kelly

Iris recognition on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus is inconsistent

Some will no doubt love iris recognition as it feels somewhat magical when it works, but for me both technologies remains too inconsistent and it makes the Galaxy S8's absurd fingerprint sensor position all the more frustrating.

Winner: Galaxy S8 - The Galaxy S7 already had a better camera than the iPhone 7, so it is no surprise the Galaxy S8 extends this lead. Apple will look to close the gap with the iPhone 8, but the real threat is newcomer Google who could race ahead of them both with the Pixel 2

Samsung is a strange company when it comes to smartphone battery life. The Galaxy S5 was a class leader, the Galaxy S6 an embarrassment, the Galaxy S7 a return to form and now the Galaxy S8 takes another step back - but it still edges out Apple’s perennially disappointing approach to its 4.7-inch iPhone.

In short: both the Galaxy S8 and iPhone 7 won’t get users through a full day with heavy usage.

Gordon Kelly

Galaxy S8 battery life is disappointing and the battery meter estimations are nonsense

What does the damage for Samsung is the combination of its significantly larger display (still the biggest power draw on a phone) with no increase in battery from the Galaxy S7 (3000 mAh). For the iPhone 7 it’s years of neglect. Apple delivers class leading battery life with its iPhone Plus models but the smaller iPhone has been under-served for years and, for all the efficiency of iOS, that will continue until Apple fits a bigger battery.

Where Samsung does have a massive lead, however, is charging. The Galaxy S8 can go from 0-50% in under 20 minutes and deliver a full charge in little over an hour. By contrast the iPhone 7 trudges along taking twice as long to get to both points and even using a higher power iPad charger makes little difference.

Another Samsung plus point is new obsession with battery safety. Following the Galaxy Note 7 debacle it has introduced a class leading ‘8 Point Quality Check’ (it is worth noting Apple has its own battery problems) and greater cycle longevity means the Galaxy S8 will lose just 5% capacity after one year when rivals typically drop 15-20%.

Samsung has also moved the Galaxy S8 to USB Type-C charging, something Apple really should do if its going to insist on filling its MacBooks with Type-C ports and no Lighting.

The headline here is Samsung’s $100 bump compared to the launch price of the Galaxy S7. As such, while Samsung has doubled the 32GB of its predecessor, the Galaxy S8 is under real pressure from the iPhone 7’s 128GB price point.

The flip side is the Galaxy S8 is expandable so you can always add more storage if you need it, and you’ll also get a pair of AKG headphones bundled which Samsung values at $100. Those who already own premium headphones would no doubt have rather had money off the asking price instead, but any discerning audio listener knows they have to upgrade Apple’s awful bundled earphones ASAP.

Winner: A Draw - Samsung’s price rises make it more expensive than the iPhone for the first time, but watch out for significant discounts in the coming months

Bottom Line - Who Dares Wins

Samsung phones are never going to be perfect. The company’s obsession with needless Android customisation, app duplication, bloatware and slow software updates ensures that - and there’s no sign of this changing anytime soon.

Gordon Kelly

The Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus designs make the iPhone 7 look dated, but Samsung software is still problematic

By contrast Samsung’s greatest weakness is Apple’s biggest strength. The iPhone 7 is without peer when it comes to a lean, fast, slick software experience.

But Apple needs this because in every other area the Galaxy S8 makes the iPhone 7 look like a dinosaur. Its design, display and battery charging are in another league and the camera extends a lead the Galaxy S7 already had. Granted the Galaxy S8 has an absurdly positioned fingerprint sensor, but that’s about the only hardware misstep.

As such the decision comes down to priorities. If it’s software you should buy the iPhone 7, it’s a massive reason but also the only reason. For everything else the Galaxy S8 capitalises on Apple’s lack of daring in recent years. That may change with an all-new iPhone 8 later this year, but while that remains speculation the simple fact is companies who dare, win.